Movable stair



A. CICILIONI MOVABLE STAIR Aug. 9, 1932.

Original Filed Nov. 25, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 atto: nu;

Aug. 9, 1932. A. clclLloNx 1,870,603

MOVABLE STAIR Original Filed Nov. 23, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY WITNESS:

Patented Aug. 9, 1932 .ALFRED CICILIONI, OF PECIKVILILE, PENNSYLVANIA MOVAIBLE STAIR Application led November 23, 1928, Serial No. 321,432. Renewed May 13, 1932.

This invention relates to amovable stairway, the general object of the invention being to provide a stairway connected with a trapdoor in such a manner that when the door is opened, the stairway will be lowered so that a person can pass from a lower room to an upper room, the stairway being raised into the room above when the door is closed, thus removing the stairs from the lower room when the door is closed so that the space ordinarily occupied by a stairway is saved.

Another object of the invention is to provide weights for counterbalancing the stairs while they are being moved.

This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and in the combinaH tion and arrangement of the several parts, to be hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and specificalli pointed out in the appended claims.

In describing my invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which Figure 1 is a sectional view showing the stairs and door in lowered position in full lines and in their other positions in dotted lines.

Figure 2 is a front view, partly in section7 showing the stairs in lowered position.

Figure 3 is a section on line 3 8 of Figure 1.

Figure l is a view showing a modification.

Figure 5 is a detail view showing one of the shoes on the frame in the upper chamber, the ligure being a section on line 5 5 of Figure 2.

In these drawings, A indicates the floor of a lower room and B indicates the floor of an upper room, a trapdoor 1 beine' provided for closing the opening 2 formed in the floor of the upper room. The stairs ae designated by the letter C and include the stringers 3 and the steps l. A p ir of arms 5, is connected with the door and these arms are connected together by the brace 6. A. shoe 7 is pivotally connected with each arm intermediate the ends thereof and these shoes engage the guideways 8 formed of channel irons attached to the outer faces of the stringers.

A frame, composed of the uprights 9 and the braces 10, is arranged in the upper room adjacent the doorway 2 `and shoes 11 are 5 pivoted to the lower ends of the diagonal braces 10 and these shoes engage the guideways 8. A stop plate 12 is fastened to the top step and extends rearwardly of the same and this plate will engage the floor B when the stairs are in lowered position, as shown in Figure 1, thus limiting the lowering movement of the stairs. Links 13 have one of their ends pivotally connecten with one of the arms 5 and links 14 have one of their ends pivotally connected with one of the links 13 and its other end is pivoted to a part of the frame, as shown at 15. Short arms 16 are connected with the stringer 3 of the stairs and links 17 are pivotally connected with said arms and with a pair of levers 18, each lever being pivoted to a post 9 of the frame, as shown at 19. A weight 2O is carried by a cross rod 21 which connects the upper ends of the levers 18 together. This weight acts as a counterbalance for the stairs.`

From the foregoing it will be seen that with the door opened and the stairs lowered, as shown in full lines in Figure 1, it is simply necessary to push upwardly either the stairs or the door to cause the lever and link connection between the frame and the stairs to slide the stairs upwardly through the opening 2 as the door is being raised. Buring this action the shoes will slide in the guideways and the weight, acting as a counterbalance, will permit the parts to be raised with the least possible effort. After the stairs reach a certain position, the weight of the upper portion thereof will automatically finish the closing movement until the stairs come to rest in asubstantially horizontal position on the floor B, with the door in closed position. When the stairway is to be used, it is simply necessary to pull downwardly upon the door, which will cause a reverse action of the link and lever connection so that the stairs will be lowered into the full line position shown in Figure 1.

Instead of using the weight counterbalance, I may use the springs shown in Figure 4. In this arrangement the levers 18 are of considerably less length than those shown in the first arrangement and the upper end of each lever 18 is pivoted to an arm 21 which is pivoted to the frame 9 at its lower end and is formed with a plurality of holes 22, any one of which is adapted to receive a turnbuckle device 23 which is connected'with a spring 24. The lower end of each spring is connected to a clip 25 which is connected with each pair of levers 17and 18 at their point of unction so that these springs act to facilitate the raising and lowering action ofthe stairs.

It is thought from the foregoing description that the advantages and novel features of the invention will be readily apparent.

It is to be' understood that changes may be made in the construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts, provided that such changes fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is 1. In combination with an upper floor of a building having an opening therein, a trapdoor for closing the opening and movable downwardly, a stairway, means for slidably connecting the stairway with a part of the door, a support above the floor, means for slidably connecting the stairway with said support, and a link arrangement connecting the stairway with the support for moving the stairway upwardly through the opening when'the door is being closed and for lowering the stairway into an inclined position when the door is open.

2. In combination with an upper floor of a building having an opening therein, a downwardly movable trapdoor for closing the opening, a supporting frame on the floor adjacent the opening, shoes pivotally connected with a part of the frame adjacent one edge of the opening, arms on the trapdoor, shoes pivotallyV connected therewith, a stairway having guideways in its stringers for receiving the shoes, levers pivoted intermediate their ends to the frame, links connecting the levers with the stairway, a weight connected with the upper ends of the levers, said levers and links causing the stairway to move upwardly through the opening as the door is being closed and downwardly through the opening when the door is beingy opened and links connecting the arms on the door with a part of the frame.

3. In combination with an upper fioor of a building having an opening therein, a downwardly movabll` vtrapdoor for closing the opening, a supporting frame on the floor adjacent the opening, shoes pivotally connected with a part of the frame adjacent one edge of the opening, arms on the trapdoor, shoes pivotally connected therewith, a stairway having guideways in its stringers for receiving the shoes, levers pivoted intermediate their ends las 

